The B.C. government is expanding the health connect registry so it’s easier for patients to find a family doctor.
The registry was being tested in certain communities but is now being expanded province-wide.
“The health connect registry is a crucial action, delivering on our government’s commitment to strengthen health care, and it will help us provide better, easier access to primary care for generations to come,” said Adrian Dix, Minister of Health in a release.
“Between the new doctors who signed up with our new-to-practice incentive program, doctors who are joining the new payment model, as well as new nurse practitioners and the many more to come, we are ensuring people throughout the province can connect with those primary-care providers and others as medical professionals enter family practice and build their patient panel.”
The registry will allow residents to connect with an available practitioner in their area based on their health needs.
Provincial officials said their work to get more doctors in the province and keep them here is working.
They said the new family doctor compensation model has had nearly 3,300 signups and the new-to-practice incentive program has seen 156 new family doctors registered.
The province will be able to have a more comprehensive list of who is looking for a primary-care provider and who already has one using the registry.
Starting on Nov. 30, the B.C. government will provide quarterly reports on their progress to add more family doctors and nurse practitioners.
–Files from Josiah Spyker, My East Kootenay Now